Strategist, entrepreneur and commentator Craig Coogan examines issues with his unique perspective. NOTE: The views expressed in this blog are of the author (Craig Coogan) alone. They do not represent any organization, client, or business that he may be associated with. You are welcome to comment below. Thank you for reading!

Thursday, March 7, 2013

Shirt off our backs

Clothes make the man said Mark Twain in a statement that
applies to mankind – not just the male gender.Fashion has become so prevalent in today’s world that it is synonymous
with the entertainment industry.Just a
few weeks ago nearly a billion people watched a lot of wealthy people walk down
a red carpet to a theatre in Hollywood and there are nearly that many photos of
the event.There are lots of ‘reality’
television shows about sewing.With such
a focus on fashion, it’s no surprise that the U.S. Government has joined the
fray.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security, on the eve of
Sequestration, finalized a $50 million contract for one year to get uniforms
for 50,000 TSA employees.The contract
is essentially a continuation of the prior one – where 2 years ago the company
was awarded $98 million over two years – so this isn’t a one time only cost.It’s a pretty standard uniform, the $1,000 cost
per employee includes 3 shirts, 2 pants and socks.

A dress uniform for the Navy tops out at $500.SEALS duds are $400.(There’s probably a discount on those since
the Pentagon would buy in bulk.)

I never thought of myself as a natty dresser, but in my earlier
career in Hollywood I was profiled in the Los
Angeles Times in their Friday Fashion column.I explained how I balanced the dress needs of
being an executive in the film industry with one foot in the finance world and
one in the entertainment world.Even then
I never came close to spending $1,000 per outfit.

Pointing out wasteful government spending is easy.The amount spent to clothe one of the most
unpopular group of Federal Employees (perhaps second to IRS Auditors) is an
important issue, but the actual money is negligible in a $3.796 trillion budget
and could be a total distraction.

The issue it raises is that nobody is managing the
government. Yes, there’s political theatre and absurdities that have resulted
in essential gridlock.But the
government has continued on – literally through a series of continuingresolutions
that fund the government.

Elected leaders aren’t – and shouldn’t be – managers.Bureaucrats make terrible managers.CEO’s, executives who run large institutions
like hospitals, universities, etc. have the particular skill to manage.That ability doesn’t justify the 343 times
in salary what their employees make
but it’s an expertise that is lacking in the public sector.

Republicans and Democrats should be able to agree that
taxpayer funds are to be expended and managed responsibly.In 1996 the Federal government passed a
requirement that all agencies pass an audit.Seventeen years later – 3 administrations later – most of the major
agencies still have failed.There’s no amount of dressing up, even at
$1,000 per outfit, that justifies the mess that is the U.S. Federal Government.